Jim Harbaugh transcript, Part 1: On Kaepernick deserving big money, his early-2013 foot injury, and the need to get him another receiver

ORLANDO–Jim Harbaugh was in prime rhetorical form early this morning at the NFC coaches media session at the annual meetings, addressing questions more directly, patiently and openly than at any previous time during his 49ers tenure.

He had just gotten over a bout of the flu or food poisoning the day before and looked refreshed and–even for him–extremely, extremely energized.

“Had a little thing yesterday,” Harbaugh said of his illness. “I was able to walk it off.”

So it was a 24-hour thing? “Walked it off in 12,” Harbaugh said with a grin.

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His conversation about QB Colin Kaepernick was particularly interesting and telling: Harbaugh is out and out campaigning for Kaepernick to get a huge new extension this off-season, and Harbaugh clearly absolved Kaepernick of all blame for the 49ers’ 2013 passing game struggles.

At times, Harbaugh said, Kaepernick simply didn’t have anybody open to throw it to. You can’t get any more direct than that.

Let’s get to Part 1 of a very, very, very long transcript of these 57 fascinating minutes of Harbaugh talk…

* Note: Some questions and answers have been moved around for clarity–to keep the same topics in order–and some of the answers are out of order because Harbaugh was asked about the topic at different times.

* Last note: Harbaugh had fewer reporters surrounding him than Philly’s Chip Kelly at the next table, but there were several waves for Harbaugh. Matt Maiocco, Matt Barrows and I were there the whole time and asked most of the questions.

Barrows is the one who got Harbaugh guffawing so much over the line about not comparing walruses (a take-off on Harbaugh’s powerful disinclination to ever compare players) that Harbaugh happily mimicked himself for a few seconds.

[Update: As Barrows just pointed out to me, the Barrows joke is actually on Part 2 of the transcript, coming soon.]

—-JIM HARBAUGH media session transcript, part 1/

-Q: You mentioned that Kaepernick’s contract extension was a top priority a couple days ago. Do you hope and expect that this deal will be done this off-season?

-HARBAUGH: Colin Kaepernick–people want to put labels on him, but one of the better quarterbacks, one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL, somewhere, you could say that.

Very gifted athletically. Very smart. One of the brightest quarterbacks I’ve ever been around. And he’s got a work ethic that’s uncommon.

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So you know he’s just going to progress and just get better and better. So that’s where we are… And he’s a very young, young gifted player, talented smart, really got it all.

So the sooner we can sign him to a contract that’s long-term, extended, the better for our organization. And to put that into a win-win, where it’s a win for Colin, a win for us, the sooner the better, absolutely.

But understanding that there’s a process to it and that’ll play out.

-Q: Do you think this could distract him if this goes on into the season?

-HARBAUGH: Colin’s done everything right and those are good problems to have. He’s in a great position. So just keep doing what you’re doing Colin and all will be well.

-Q: Are you and the offensive staff looking to work with Colin on specific things to round out his game?

-HARBAUGH: Yes, a real good scheme evaluation I think is what’s next for us as coaches, now that we’ve had Colin for a year-and-a-half and understand what we all do well, what we can do better.

I think that’s something that’s a priority right now and we’ll talk.

-Q: Do you foresee big changes to your scheme?

-HARBAUGH: No, not big changes. But always be an evolution, always strive to make it better.

-Q: Is it wrong to say that you guys seemed to throw it–and want to throw it–more as the season went along last season?

-HARBAUGH: To throw the ball more?

-Q: To go down field more.

-HARBAUGH: I think it definitely evolved, or there were more options when Michael Crabtree came back. That was something that was big for Colin, big for our offense.

-Q: Will Colin be working with a coach–a QB coach–before the off-season program begins?

-HARBAUGH: Colin? No, not that I’m aware of.

-Q: Would you like him to? Is there anybody that you would…

-HARBAUGH: Recommend? Uhh, I know he’s working out in Miami now. I don’t know that he’s working out with a quarterbacks coach. I wouldn’t be offended if he was.

-Q: Has the prospect of Colin’s new deal affected what you can do in free agency?

-HARBAUGH: We were aggressive in free agency. We got some things done. We missed out on a few. But we were in there slugging.

I don’t think there was anything set aside, ‘this is Colin’s money’ or ‘this is Aldon Smith’ or somebody else down the road. At least I wasn’t in that meeting if that was.

-Q: You see all these pictures of Colin working out with weights and otherwise. Is there a concern that a QB might not want to get too big and muscled up?

-HARBAUGH: Colin’s just a big person. If he were ever to stand next to you, or me… just illustrates just how big he is. He’s just a big man.

I’ve seen him train. This is not a guy that’s repping out as many reps on the bench as he can rep. I mean, this is high-tech new age kind of working on all the little tiny muscles, lock in the joints… they know what they’re doing.

It’s not barbaric. See how big he can get. ‘Get some lats in!’ (Laughs.)

-Q: Quarterbacks aren’t historically as big as he is. Were you?

-HARBAUGH: No, no. No.

-Q: He constantly is working on his body, we see it all the time. Is it wrong to say maybe it’s time for Colin to work more on the mental aspect of being a quarterback?

-HARBAUGH: He does that. He does that, too. He’s in there at 6:30 a.m. working out. I mean, his car’s the first one in the lot. And he knocks that out before the sun comes up, you know?

Then he’s in the film room after that. So, it’s uncommon. It’s not that… to your point… that he’s working out five hours a day. He’s not.

He works out, knocks it out early in the morning, then he is bright-eyed and has got a ton of energy when he comes into the football meetings and then he attacks that as well.

And he is very smart. One of the high Wonderlic test scores of all the starting quarterbacks. Just keeps attacking it the rest of the day.

-Q: You said Manziel sees the field as good as anybody in college. How well does Kaepernick see the field in a game?

-HARBAUGH: Very good, very well. And throws the ball very accurately. I think we continue to get guys open and give him places to go with the ball.

There was a stretch there last year where he didn’t have that–and he played through it. And never an excuse, never a bony finger of blame towards anybody.

There were definitely times where we just were not getting guys open for him.

-Q: He blamed himself for the NFC Championship Game loss…

-HARBAUGH: No, it’s not that…

-Q: Do you want your QB taking it that hard and putting something like that on his own shoulders?

-HARBAUGH: I think it’s a testament to who he is. I mean, he’s got broad shoulders, as Matt pointed out. And he takes on accountability.

He’s the kind of guy, he charges in, rushes in to put accountability on his own shoulders, like a lot of our guys do. Which is admirable.

-Q: The whole story of the last two years is seen by some as two failed passes at the end of games… How does that affect Colin, you think? Is it motivation?

-HARBAUGH: I mean I know how we all feel–we have great hope, we have great belief in ourselves and in each other. And we have great belief in our quarterback.

And that puts a bounce in our step–it does mine, anyway, every single day. Just to attack that day and do what I can to help make our team better because we ‘ve got a lot. We’ve got a lot going for us.

-Q: You guys have such a carefully structured payroll. When and if Colin gets his deal, he’ll go way to the top of it, maybe by a lot. Will that be accepted by the locker room because he works so hard?

-HARBAUGH: That he is as good as he is and puts in the work? No question, no question about it.

We’re all looking at it that way; he deserves that, that’s what he deserves. That’s what the market pays for that job and nobody attacks it more than he does. Nobody wants to be great like he does.

-Q: If he doesn’t get a new deal this year, he’s making less than half of Gabbert’s salary, that’s his back up. Could that be a problem?

-HARBAUGH: No, I don’t think it’ll be a problem. What, that…

-Q: The starter making less than half of his back up?

-HARBAUGH: I think we all know what Colin’s earning potential is.

-Q: What’s the number?

-HARBAUGH: (Smiles.) Pretty much know what the numbers are.

-Q: Some analysts who have played the game and study it referred to Kaepernick as a one-read quarterback, that he locks onto his first guy and doesn’t come off him. Was he guilty of that last year? Can he do a better job of going through his progression?

-HARBAUGH: Uh, no. Some of the time there was just one guy to go to. And there was times where we had Anquan, we had Vernon, they were literally doubling Anquan and doubling Vernon.

And he had one other option to go to. And sometimes that wasn’t one, sometimes he would fit it in there. Shoe horn it in.

But there was tough sledding at times. And it’s on all of us to make it better. It’s on the players–let’s get another really good option besides Anquan, besides Michael, besides Vernon. We talked about that earlier.

But there were times in the 2013 season where his options was just get to one guy.

So-called experts that you’re talking about [Harbaugh drops into a thin nasal voice], ‘Oh, the 1, the 2, the 3, the 4…’ Uh, you know, they’re not sitting back there in that pocket, anyway.

[Takes a deep breath and laughs.]

Let’s move on. Before I get emotionally high-jacked. [Laughs.]

-Q: You’re already there.

-HARBAUGH: I’m already there? I feel high-jacked. [Laughs.]

-Q: Was there any kind of conversation with Colin early in the season where you told him he didn’t need to run as much, maybe keep yourself protected, let’s not emphasize that part of the game?

-HARBAUGH: We weren’t calling those plays as much at the beginning of the season. We didn’t want to see Colin get hit 12 times a game. Thought four or five maybe, that’s it.

That was a conscious effort.

-Q: Then you eased up on that limitation in the playoffs?

-HARBAUGH: Yeah, in the playoffs, toward the end.

-Q: How did he get through the season physically?

-HARBAUGH: I think he talks to the trainers more than he does to me about it. Every time I ask him he’s fine, he’s OK.

-Q: Do you think he got hurt in the Green Bay game?

-HARBAUGH: Early?

-Q: Yeah, Week 1.

-HARBAUGH: One of those early games, yeah.

-Q: His foot?

-HARBAUGH: Yeah.

-Q: Did that hamper him a little bit?

-HARBAUGH: Uhh, yeah, it did. I could notice it, especially in practice.

-Q: Throwing it or running it?

-HARBAUGH: I think anything when you have a foot or a hand or a finger, it affects you throwing and running.

-Q: Is that you have to tell him, hey Colin I need to know if you’re banged up?

-HARBAUGH: No, I know he is. If I can see it… he doesn’t verbalize it and says he’s fine, says he’s going to play through it. Which I respect.

I mean, if it ever got to the point where I felt like it was hurting him or an injury could be worse, or he was hurting the team, then I would step in.

-Q: And he never missed practice time?

-HARBAUGH: No, he never missed a practice or a game.

-Q: Did it happen on the Clay Matthews hit in Week 1?

-HARBAUGH: I don’t know which one it was.

-Q: Right in there.

-HARBAUGH: Yeah.

-Q: Andrew Luck is one of the few QBs who had a good game against them last year–he had a down field receiver in TY Hilton, small fast guy. Is that something your team could add–a down field receiver, different than Crabtree and Boldin?